Contractual auditing & maintenance
Compliance with the formal requirements of the contract is not just a “good idea” but an absolute imperative. Most construction contracts today are riddled with obligatory provisions such as so-called “time bars” which can effectively invalidate a party’s entire entitlement should that party not provide proper notification within the time frames stated on the contract. Research has shown that the simple failure to provide timeous notices in accordance with the contracts that are undertaken costs the construction industry many hundreds of millions of dollars every year.
Beside the preparation of notifications, the record keeping of appropriate and relevant documentation relating to events that give rise to entitlements such as proper cause and effect records, photographs etc. must be kept and maintained during the construction period. This not only becomes the evidentiary backbone of any claim for additional time or compensation but is also an absolute necessity for any submission to future dispute resolution forums. Considering that disputes are generally resolved many months after the events may have occurred and that people that were involved in the running of he project may have moved on, one is often left with not much more than the documentation that was generated at the time of the occurrence of the event and the success of one’s claim is therefore critically dependant on the quality of such documentation and record keeping.
Notwithstanding the competency and efficiency of most contract managers, it is a difficult task indeed to manage construction activities whilst at the same time detecting breaches by the other party, submitting the requisite notice’s on time, compiling proper evidence of cause and effect and then tracking the progress of each issue through to its conclusion. Considering the huge pressure associated with fast-track projects and the contract manager’s primary consideration to meet his obligations, it is not surprising that so many opportunities are forfeited across the industry.
Tiefenthaler Consulting provides a comprehensive service, using properly qualified and experienced consultants to conduct an overview of the contractual needs of the particular project, to set up and implement a proper management system to identify, record and communicate all potentially compensable events and to provide on-going monitoring and auditing of the management system.
Tiefenthaler Consulting is proud to be associated with Contract Communicator, a breakthrough internet-based delay & disruption claims management system.